Of Men
by Tashilover
Summary: Castiel remembers a conversation he had with the Son.


"And what is your name?"

Castiel felt uncomfortable in this vessel. Confined. He knew it was only temporary; he would leave the boy before the day ended. But he couldn't help the constant flexing of his fingers. He kept expecting the bones to break through, his power to overwhelm his human host.

"Castiel," he tells Him.

"Castiel," He turned towards him and smiled. "Come, stand next to me."

Castiel hesitated for a second then complied. He took his place next to Him, unsure of what to say or do. The angel jumped when His hand clapped down on his shoulder. "Angels," He chuckled. "You're all so serious."

Castiel frowned. Why was He smiling? Did He just say something funny? The angel twitched his cheeks upwards, in hopes to comply with the joke.

He squeezed his shoulder. "You're very special, do you know that, Castiel? I can feel it. You have a great destiny ahead of you."

Castiel finally thought of something to say. "So do you. Greater than anything."

"Don't undermine your own worth," He said with a firm tone. "You…are different from the others, my friend."

That confused him. "In what way?"

"You didn't kneel," He chuckled, the laugh lines around his eyes deepened. "When you first saw me."

"Forgive me," Castiel said and immediately dropped to one knee. "I wasn't aware-"

"Oh, hush," He chastised lightly. "Don't worry about it. You are my friend, Castiel. Friends don't kneel to each other… unless one is injured and the other is trying to help him up."

He chuckled again as Castiel stood, the angel confused once more. Was that another joke? Should he laugh? "May I ask a question?"

"Of course you may."

"This meeting with you… it is a requirement for all angels. But if there was no requirement… would you still-"

"Want to meet with all of you?"

Castiel nodded.

"Of course," He said gently. "But would _you_ want to meet with _me_, if there was no requirement?"

"Of course I would!"

"Because of who I am, or what I am?"

Castiel cocked his head, his features pinching in confusion. "I don't understand."

"Take away my name, my destiny, my parentage," He stretched out his arms and took a few steps backwards. "If I were just a man, would you even bother with me?"

Castiel opened his mouth, a definite _"Yes!" _ready to spring out. But as the question slowly worked through his thoughts, he slowly closed his mouth and hung his head in shame. "No," he said. "I don't think so."

The angel expected anger to be directed towards him. He was surprised when that same hand touched his shoulder again and the soft voice to follow. "The truth is nothing to be ashamed of. It is because of this, my friend, is why you are different."

"Because I didn't kneel?"

He threw his head back and laughed. Castiel didn't understand why everything he said or did was so funny to Him.

()

"Hey, Cas?"

Castiel sloshed his beer around in lazy circles, fascinated how the bubbles appeared and disappeared. He looked at Dean, who was twisting a chair around to sit in it. "Hmm?"

"Didja ever meet Jesus Christ?"

"Dude," Sam rolled his eyes from his spot in front of his laptop. "This better not be some sort of offensive conversation."

"It's just a question- and besides, don't tell me you're not curious. So, Cas, didja meet him?"

"Cas, don't answer that if you don't want to-"

"I did."

Both Winchesters went quiet at Castiel's answer. Dean's grin quirked a few times before he distracted his mouth with a quick sip of his beer. "So, uh," Dean said softly, looking at the bottle instead of Castiel. "Who…wha… what he looked like?"

Sam, who curiously enough didn't want Castiel to answer in the first place, was now facing them, leaning on his knees in interest.

"He was young," Castiel finally said. "Younger than the two of you now. He was… twenty-one I believe."

"Wow," Sam sighed in awe. "Why were you there? Talking to him, I mean. Was there a crisis…?"

"No," he said, not blaming Sam for that line of thought. "It was a requirement for all angels to speak with Him once. It was the very first time I walked the Earth."

"…What did you talk about? If you don't mind me by asking."

Castiel thought about that. Would he be offended by sharing the conversation he had with the Son? For some strange odd reason, Castiel didn't think He would mind. "He said that I was different."

"Different?" Said Dean.

"From the other angels. When I asked in what way, He wouldn't specify. To this day, I still don't know what He meant."

"Hmm…" Dean pursed his lips. He then shrugged. "Well, no point in trying to find out at this point. You enjoying your beer, there, Cas?"

"Not particularly," Castiel said, setting it down. "I like the bubbles, though."

"Dude," Dean moaned. "That is so what a girl would say. Are you a girl?"

"Not the last time I checked."

Sam laughed. Dean rolled his eyes. And Castiel, amused by the sight, allowed himself a smirk.


End file.
